Be Uniquely You

(Because Fake Is Exhausting)

Let’s talk about the rarest, most underappreciated trait in the human zoo: being truly, unapologetically YOU.

Be weird. Be bold. Be yourself. Unless you're fake—then kindly exit stage left and take your pastel persona with you.

By definition, “unique” means the only one of its kind. One-of-one. Custom-built. A limited-edition original with no replacement parts.

Not everything I write has to be about the absurdity of others. Occasionally, I’ll put down the sarcasm sword and hand out a mirror. This one’s about you. And maybe a little about me. And okay, a loving elbow jab to anyone still faking it.

My best friend and I, we've seen a thing or two and we carry the scuff marks to prove it. But we’ve learned that there’s one hill that’s worth dying on: You must be exactly who you are.
Loud, soft, weird, brilliant, offbeat, center-stage, it doesn’t matter. Just don’t be a copy-paste cardboard cutout of what you think the world wants to see.

Give me rare. Give me quirky. Hell, give me a certified eccentric with a nervous twitch and a passion for ukulele polka—but be real.

Me? I can take or leave just about anyone on any given day. (Ask my group text, I’m always just one bad emoji away from quitting humanity.)
But when I meet someone genuine, someone whose weird matches their wonderful? I’m hooked. I don’t care if they dress in wallpaper samples or talk to their plants like they expect a reply. If they’re real, I’m in.

They shine in a world of filters and focus groups. They don’t just march to the beat of their own drummer—They’re out there playing the kazoo in a marching band of one. And I respect that.

Now on the flip side...

There’s a certain breed of person walking around marinated in artificial flavoring and drenched in secondhand personality.
You know the type: fake deep, fake rich, fake nice. All shimmer, no soul. Their vibe screams knockoff cologne—something like Try Hard by Desperation.

To them I say:
Not today, Ray.
You can keep your curated nonsense and your “authentic” Instagram caption sponsored by Approval Addiction.

If you can’t be uniquely you, it’s a hard pass for me.

Because here's the truth: real appreciates real. And fake?
Fake walks in wearing confidence like a rented tux, ill-fitting and due back by noon.

So here’s your Southern-fried challenge:

Be rare. Be strange. Be soulful, loud, invincible, bold, broken, glorious, you name it.
But be you.

We don’t need another echo.
We need an original.

So the next time someone tries to tell you to tone it down or fit in, remember this:

God didn’t make you a limited edition so you could act like you came from the clearance bin.

And to anyone who can’t handle your realness?

Dione Warwick sang it best – Walk on By (Don’t Stop) TY - Bacharach & David

“So go ahead. Be too much, too real, too you. That’s ‘The Condition’—and it’s beautiful.”